


Sun Comes Up, It's Tuesday Morning

by manymessyfandoms



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Aunt May is dead, Eventual Torture, Hurt Peter Parker, More tags to come!, Oops, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Has A Heart, eventual adoption
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-08
Updated: 2018-07-03
Packaged: 2019-05-19 14:18:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 13,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14875367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/manymessyfandoms/pseuds/manymessyfandoms
Summary: May Parker died on a Tuesday.She died quietly, they said. They said the blockage in her heart was undetectable until it was too late. They said there wasn’t anything anyone could’ve done, and that it wasn’t anybody’s fault. Not even Peter could’ve protected her from this.Peter Parker became an orphan on a Tuesday.Just barely fifteen years old with no other family, he was left to the mercy of the foster care system.Ironically enough, it was also a Tuesday when Tony Stark stumbled onto a stubborn kid on the streets, and their lives changed forever.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My first chaptered fic wow! Let's see how this goes. Stay tuned, babes <3
> 
> Also warning for excessive POV change throughout the story, aljsdkak

_May Parker died on a Tuesday._

_She died quietly, they said. They said the blockage in her heart was undetectable until it was too late. They said there wasn’t anything anyone could’ve done, and that it wasn’t anybody’s fault. Not even Peter could’ve protected her from this._

_Peter Parker became an orphan on a Tuesday._

_Just barely fifteen years old with no other family, he was left to the mercy of the foster care system._

_Ironically enough, it was also a Tuesday when Tony Stark stumbled onto a stubborn kid on the streets, and their lives changed forever. ___  
*  
*  
*  
* 

__PETER  
The only thing Peter knew was that it was _hot _. It was burning hot, and the building Peter was camping out in did nothing to keep the heat out.___ _

____A loud bang startled him up, and he swayed on his feet. The dehydration was taking a serious toll on him, and he was starting to worry._ _ _ _

____When he ran away from whichever foster family he was in a month ago, he wasn’t worried. He was Spiderman, he could handle himself._ _ _ _

____But then came the hunger, the thirst, the fatigue, and Peter realized that even though he was Spiderman, he really was just Peter Parker, a fifteen year old kid just trying to make it._ _ _ _

____He missed Ned. Ned’s family had to leave for the summer and live with his uncle because of some family emergency. Peter felt a pang of guilt when he realized he didn’t even know what the emergency was; he’s been so wrapped up in his own problems._ _ _ _

____Peter sighed and shakily got to his feet again as he shook off his thoughts. He swallowed down some thickness in his throat, slowly left the building, and set off towards the city, hoping he could get some free water somewhere._ _ _ _

____TONY  
“Pepper Potts! The love of my life, the reason I’m alive, the light-”_ _ _ _

Pepper laughed, cutting him off. “What do you need, Tony?"

Tony turned to her with what he hoped was his most desperate look. “I’ve got a meeting in the city today, but Cap needs me for something very important.” Pepper rolled her eyes fondly. “So, I was wondering if you could go for me.”

____“Steve doesn’t need you for anything important. I know for a fact that he and Bucky are just-” She cut off to glare at him disapprovingly. “Anthony Stark, you are not missing a meeting to play with whatever new alien toys Steve and Bucky are going to check out.”_ _ _ _

____“First of all, they’re weapons. Dangerous alien weapons, of course they’re going to need me! What if something happens?”_ _ _ _

____Pepper smiled and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “You’re going to that meeting. They can handle the big bad alien junk on their own.” Tony groaned._ _ _ _

____That’s how he found himself walking the city streets an hour later. He was already regretting not driving. The heat was intense._ _ _ _

____“Hey, watch it!” a man in front of Tony snapped._ _ _ _

____“S- sorry,” replied a small voice. Tony scrunched his eyebrows and looked for the source of the voice, and his heart sank when he saw a young kid on the ground with his head in his knees._ _ _ _

____“Hey, kid,” Tony said. “You okay?”_ _ _ _

____The boy didn’t even raise his head. “Yeah, yeah. ‘M fine.” When Tony didn’t leave, the kid sighed and slowly started shuffling to his feet. “Sorry, I’ll go.”_ _ _ _

____“Whoa, whoa, easy there, tiger.” Tony reached and gripped his shoulder. The kid looked up at Tony and his eyes widened. “What’s your name?”_ _ _ _

____“You’re Tony Stark.”_ _ _ _

____“Yes, but I believe I asked what your name is, kid.”_ _ _ _

____“Peter,” he said quietly, still staring at Tony in awe._ _ _ _

____“Peter. Right, well where are your parents at, Peter?”_ _ _ _

____Peter looked down at his shoes. “Th- they’re at home. I went out for a walk, but got tired. I didn’t bring enough water.”_ _ _ _

____Tony scoffed and handed Peter his own water. “Come on, I’ll take you home. Your parents are probably worried sick.”_ _ _ _

____Peter looked at the water with wide eyes for a few seconds before chugging it all down in one go. “Thanks, Mr. Stark, but it’s okay. Really. I’ll go back later.”_ _ _ _

____Tony squinted. “Where do you live?”_ _ _ _

____Peter’s face fell for a second before he smirked. “I’m not sure I’m supposed to tell strangers my address. You could be a crazy kidnapper for all I know.”_ _ _ _

____Tony rolled his eyes. “Alright, you’re going to be difficult then?” Peter just grinned at him. “Fine. I’m going to just sit here with you until you’re ready for me to take you home.”_ _ _ _

____“What?” The confusion was thick in Peter’s voice. “No, you’ve got things to do. I’m fine, really, I’ll go home later.” Tony didn’t respond, just sat down next to Peter stubbornly._ _ _ _

____He didn’t know why he felt the need to make sure this kid was okay. He knew he had that meeting and he knew Pepper was going to be pissed, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave Peter._ _ _ _

____“Mr. Stark, I’m okay. You can leave.”_ _ _ _

____“Will you let me drop you off at home where I’ll know you won’t be slow cooking yourself on some dirty street?”_ _ _ _

____Tony saw Peter raise his eyebrows and his expression harden slightly, and Tony knew he’d be there for awhile. That was a look he’d seen plenty of times in the mirror growing up. Peter was stubborn, and now he wasn’t going to let Tony make sure he gets home okay just to prove whatever point he was trying to make. It was a very Tony Stark move._ _ _ _

____God, what a menace._ _ _ _

____Peter closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall. “You’re free to leave whenever, Mr. Stark.”_ _ _ _

____Thirty minutes later, Tony was sweating uncomfortably and beginning to regret trying to help this little pain in the ass._ _ _ _

____“Peter… whatever-your-last-name, it is the middle of summer, and if you don’t let me get you home, then I’ll… I’ll do something bad. I’m goddamn Tony Stark, I can do whatever I want, I’m just too hot to think of something right now.” The only thing that let Tony know that Peter even heard was the amused grin that spread across his face. Another hour passed and Tony knew he had to try a different tactic. “Wow. I sure am thirsty. It’s too bad I gave the last of my water to this random kid on the street.” Peter cracked an eye open and looked at him. “I missed a meeting too. My fiance is going to kill me for missing that meeting. That office is only opened on Tuesdays, and I’m usually busy on those days.” That wasn’t necessarily the truth, but it got Peter to turn to him with a slightly guilty expression._ _ _ _

____“You… you missed a meeting? Was it important?”_ _ _ _

____“Aren’t all meetings I attend important?” Peter frowned a little. “You know that fiance I mentioned? I’m supposed to meet up with her for a late lunch. She’s just going to be sitting there, eternally waiting for little ole me, like that one lady from the Notebook.”_ _ _ _

____Peter laughed a little. “That is not how the Notebook went.”_ _ _ _

____Tony waved his hand in dismissal. “I know there was an old lady in a retirement home waiting for something, I’m pretty sure. That’s close enough.”_ _ _ _

____“Mr. Stark, you can go.”_ _ _ _

____“Peter, I don’t care what argument you had with your parents, but running away isn’t the solution. Just let me take you back where they can tuck you into bed and turn on your nightlight and you’ll be safe and sound.”_ _ _ _

____A look crossed Peter’s face so quickly that Tony couldn’t identify it. “Fine. You can drop me off at my house.”_ _ _ _

____“Finally,” Tony groaned, standing up. “Trust me, kid. It’s better this way.”_ _ _ _

____Peter directed him towards his house, which luckily wasn’t too far._ _ _ _

____“Okay. This is me. My parents won’t be home until later, so you can go.”_ _ _ _

____Tony glanced around, half expecting them to come running out, saying how worried they were. “Alright then. You seem like a good kid, so just stay out of trouble. Don’t run away from your family again. Parents hate that.”_ _ _ _

____Peter laughed and nodded before grabbing the spare key from under the mat and letting him inside his house. “Thanks, Mr. Stark,” he said before disappearing from Tony’s view._ _ _ _

____Tony pulled out his phone and dialed Pepper. “Hi, honey. So uh, I missed the meeting.”_ _ _ _


	2. Chapter 2

PETER  
The next day Peter woke up on Ned’s couch, feeling slightly guilty for using his friends house, but really he had no other choice. He usually only snuck over there when it was absolutely necessary, like he needed a quick shower, or was actually about to keel over from a heat stroke.

The entire day before felt like some fever dream. Peter still couldn’t believe Tony Stark had sat with him for over an hour, just to make sure he got home safe. Peter supposed the Iron Man in him took over for a second. 

A loud knock sounded, and Peter jumped. “Knock knock, underoos. Time to face the music,” Peter heard Tony Stark’s voice through the door.

“Uh… no one’s home?”

“Peter Parker, open the door.”

The fact that Tony knew his last name, even though he distinctly remembered specifically not telling him, had him shaken up so bad that he was opening the door before he even realized what he was doing.

“There he is,” Tony said as he strutted through the door. “Someone’s a little liar.”

“W- what are you- I mean,” Peter stuttered. 

“After I got home last night I got thinking about how weird this whole situation was, so I did a little digging. This house belongs to Natalie and David Leeds, where they live with their son, Edward Leeds. No one named Peter, isn’t that interesting?”

“So interesting,” Peter mumbled.

“I found out Edward Leeds, also known as Ned Leeds, attends Midtown School of Science and Technology. Impressive. Tough school, and he’s a good student. All A’s and B’s.”

“Mr. Stark-”

“His best friend, according to my resources, is Peter Parker. Which is you.” Tony looked proud of himself, and Peter got angry.

“Well?”

“What?”

“Aren’t you going to continue telling me all about your research? How Peter Parker’s parents died when he was a kid, then his uncle died a few years ago, then his aunt died eleven months ago, and now he’s a sad little orphan boy, jumping from foster home to foster home, just trying to keep his head above water?” Peter didn’t even realize there were tears leaking from his eyes. “Tell me all about my pathetic life, Mr. Stark. I’m listening.”

Tony looked at him guiltily. “That’s not why I came here, Peter.”

“Then why did you come here? Why couldn’t you just leave me be?”

“Kid, I want to help-”

“You can’t help me! No one can help me.” With that, Peter stormed out the door, leaving Tony behind.

After a couple hours of wandering the streets, his head was throbbing so bad he decided to sit down, only to awaken an indeterminable amount of time later to his Spidey senses going crazy.

“What’s-” he barely got the word out before he was being hit from all angles.

TONY  
“I just don’t get it!” Tony groaned into his hands. “Why won’t the kid just let me help him?”

“How’re you going to help him, Tony?” Bruce Banner asked back as he worked on whatever he was working on in the lab. 

“I don’t know, but I’m sure there’s something I could do. He’s… he’s a good kid, Banner. I can tell.”

Bruce sighed. “Look, if you’re that concerned about this random boy, why don’t you just go talk to his foster parents? Get them to tighten the reins on him a little bit, and not let him take naps on the streets.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Tony muttered before standing up quickly.

“Wha- I didn’t mean now!”

“Yes you did!”

“Tony-”

“This was your idea!” Tony quickly left the lab and started trying to find out what he could on Peter’s foster parents. He let out a laugh when he found them so fast. “I’m amazing.”

Steve, Natasha, and Rhodey all walked in then. 

“Where’re you going, Tony?” Natasha asked. 

“Ask Banner, I’m in a hurry.”

Tony barely heard them say goodbye before he was out the door. 

STEVE  
“Well. That was weird,” Steve said, scrunching his eyebrows a little. 

Just then Bruce entered the room. “Did he leave already?” They nodded. “I don’t know what has gotten into him.”

“Where’d he go?”

“Remember that street kid he mentioned yesterday? Well, turns out he’s a foster kid and was sneaking into his friend’s house for the night. Tony now thinks he’s his responsibility for some reason.”

Natasha laughed a little. “That’s sweet, Tony’s thinking about someone other than himself! I feel like we should mark this in the calendar or something.”

Steve shifted a little on his feet. “I mean, can we blame him? The foster care system is notoriously rough, and if the kid was running away then there must’ve been a reason.” There was a heavy silence. 

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Rhodey said. “All kids run away at some point. Everything’s probably alright.”

Steve nodded before walking to the kitchen. “So, what’s everyone want for dinner tonight?”


	3. Chapter 3

TONY  
“Hello?” Tony called out, knocking on the door. “Is anybody there?” There was a loud thump followed by quieter thumps before the door swung open and Tony almost got knocked out by the smell of alcohol that hit him like a brick wall.

“What do you want?” the man grumbled. 

“I- uh, is Peter here?”

“Who?”

Tony paused. “Peter Parker. Your foster kid.”

“You’re mistaken. Peter left about a month ago.”

“What?” Tony pulled up his phone. “No, it says here that legally you’re still his foster parent.”

The guys eyes widened. “Really? Well I’ll be damned. I thought they took ‘im away. Where’s he been?”

Tony was starting to feel slightly nauseous. “When was the last time he was here, under a roof with food on the table?”

The guy paused. “Are you a cop? I done nothing wrong.”

“No, I’m not a cop. Just when did you see him last?”

The guy sighed. “I told you, like a month ago. I didn’t even know he was still mine.”

Tony took a deep breath before abruptly turning around and storming off. He needed to find this kid.

PETER  
Peter groaned and tried to stop the blood flowing from his nose, the four guys that jumped him all unconscious at his feet. 

“Shit.” He could already feel his eye swelling up. It could’ve been worse, so much worse, but he was able to get control of the situation fairly quickly. He still took a few hits though. Normally, he’d be healed within a couple days, but that’s when he wasn’t dehydrated and malnourished. 

He didn’t know how long he was walking around for before he was met by Tony Stark yet again.

“Dude,” Peter groaned, too tired to be angry. “What’s your deal?”

“Peter?” That’s was the last thing he heard before he collapsed.

TONY  
Tony saw in the dark the kid’s eyes roll to the back of his head as he took a dive to the floor.

“Oh, for Pete’s sake-” Tony cut off and chuckled, a little bummed Peter wasn’t conscious for his unintentional joke. “Come on, kid, I’ve got you.” He picked up and kid and placed him in the back of the car before driving off towards the tower.

In the light in the car, he noticed the blood on his face and the darkness around his eye. Tony quickly starting driving faster. 

“Hey, FRIDAY, tell Banner to meet me in the medbay.”

“Sure thing, boss.”

When he finally got to the tower, Peter was awake again. 

“I’m fine,” he grumbled. 

“No, kid, actually you’re not. What happened to your face?”

“Why do you care?” Peter sniped back.

Tony ran a hand down his face and said, “God, you’re such a teenager,” before stepping out of the car. “Look, I’m trying to be nice, so just let me. Please?”

Peter’s face cracked and he sucked in a stuttered breath. “Okay,” he said in a small voice.

“Yeah?” Peter nodded. “Good. Come on. I’m going to have Banner check you out.”

Peter abruptly stopped and choked on air. “Banner? As in Bruce? Bruce Banner?”

“The one and only.”

Peter looked simultaneously terrified and ecstatic. “Are you kidding? He doesn’t need to see me! He- he’s got important stuff to do! I can’t-”

“Come on, let’s go.”

If Tony thought Peter’s rambling was bad before he met Bruce, it was nothing compared to when he came face to face with him.

“Hi, you must be Peter. Come take a seat.”

Peter was frozen. “You- you’re- hi, Mr. Banner, I’m Peter. But you knew that. I just- I’m a really big fan. I’ve read all of your gamma radiation research, and I think it’s just-”

“You read my research? And you understood it?” Tony was also a little taken aback. He knew the kid had to be smart for going to that school on primarily scholarships, but he didn’t know he’d be advanced enough to understand Banner’s work.

Peter was nodding. “I mean- yeah, but it took me a couple weeks to get it.”

“Right,” Bruce said with a smile as he locked eyes with Tony. “Well, come sit. You look like you’re kind of a mess.” Tony saw Peter blush. “What happened?” he asked as he started wiping at Peter’s face.

“Uh, just a couple of guys.”

“ _A couple _?” Tony said sharply. “Are you serious?”__

__“Sorry, Mr. Stark,” he whispered._ _

__“I’m not mad at you, Pete, you didn’t do anything. I’m just- don’t do it again.”_ _

__Peter cocked his head. “You mean... don’t get beat up against my will again?”_ _

__“Yes, Parker, don’t do that. Bruce, fix him please.”_ _

__Bruce smiled and began helping him again as Peter continued to talk. He talked about Bruce’s research and even Tony’s inventions, and Tony couldn’t believe just how smart this kid actually was._ _

__“Okay, you should be good. Just make sure you’re eating and drinking enough, but other than that, you should be healed up relatively quickly.”_ _

__“You’re staying for dinner tonight, kid.”_ _

__“Wait, what-”_ _

__“Sorry, I don’t make the rules.”_ _

__Peter laughed. “Yes, you do actually.”_ _

__Tony just gave him a look._ _

__BRUCE  
Bruce, Tony, and Peter were sitting in the lab eating Chinese food and talking about things Peter should have no idea how to comprehend when Tony spoke up, making them all pause._ _

__“Intern for me, Peter,” Tony said and the table turned to him._ _

__There was a beat and Peter choked on some food. “What?” Peter asked breathlessly._ _

__“Intern with me. You’re obviously smart enough. You can keep up with Bruce and me. Come on. It’s a good idea.”_ _

__Bruce grinned. He was surprised, but he liked Peter. Really liked him. He was sharp and quick, and kept even Tony on his toes._ _

__“W- what do you mean? What would I do?”_ _

__Tony squinted his eyes, thinking for a second. “I’m not a hundred percent sure, but we’d figure it out.” Peter looked both excited and confused._ _

__“I think that’s a great idea,” Bruce said. “I could use your help in the lab, you know. Not a lot of people can keep up with us.”_ _

__“You can have a room here, and be on call.” That had Bruce pausing, slightly confused._ _

__“Mr. Stark, you don’t- it’s okay, I have-”_ _

__“No, you don’t. I kind of went to your foster parents house.”_ _

__Peter gaped. “You what?”_ _

__“And you haven’t been there in a month, and I’m not letting you sleep on the streets, so here we are.”_ _

__“So you pity me,” Peter said sadly._ _

__Tony waved his hand. “That’s not it, kid. You’re a good person. I’ve barely met you and I already know that. We help you, you help us. Fair trade. No pity.”_ _

__Peter glanced up at him. “I help you, you help me?”_ _

__“Exactly.”_ _

__Peter glanced and Bruce and Bruce nodded. “Okay,” Peter sighed. “Okay.”_ _

__Tony just smiled, and Bruce looked at Peter, wondering just how much things were about to change._ _


	4. Chapter 4

TONY  
"So you're telling me that you honestly thought this through?" Clint asked as everyone crunched on the couch watching some documentary that Steve picked.

"Yup," Tony replied, eating a handful of popcorn.

Clint sighed. "It's just... I have kids, Tony, and-"

"I'm going to stop you right there," Tony said as he held up a hand. "He's not my kid, first of all. It's not like I'm adopting him or anything. I'm giving him a place to crash and in return, we get to use his brain, which I already know is brilliant. Bruce can vouch for that."

Bruce nodded. "It's true."

"See? It's true. So we can pump the brakes on _that _train, alright, Katniss?"__

__Clint scoffed. "Whatever. I was just saying that kids are a lot of responsibility."_ _

__"Can you guys stop bickering, I'm trying to watch," Natasha said. "When's the kid getting here anyways?"_ _

__Tony glanced at the clock. "Should be any minute. He said he had to grab a few things. I bet he's been outside for almost an hour trying to work up the courage to actually walk in here."_ _

__Steve let out a chuckle. "He has not been-"_ _

__"FRIDAY, is Peter Parker outside the building?"_ _

__"Mr. Parker has been out front for forty two minutes and thirty three seconds." Tony just pointed to Steve with a smirk, and Steve rolled his eyes._ _

__Tony stood up and walked to the door. "I'll go get the kid. Don't miss me too much."_ _

__When Tony got downstairs, he smiled a little when he saw Peter pacing out front holding a backpack. He was such a kid. Fifteen years old is too young to be dealing with what he has been._ _

__He shook off the slight clenching in his chest and pounded on the glass. Peter jumped before blushing and walking inside._ _

__"Hey, Mr. Stark. I was just making sure I, uh, didn't forget anything."_ _

__"For forty five minutes?" Peter's blush darkened, and Tony decided to give him a break. "Come on, kid. Time to meet the team."_ _

__The entire way back up, Peter was practically vibrating with nerves. "So who's all there?"_ _

__"Steve, Nat, Clint, Bruce. Thor should be coming around pretty soon. Wanda's off somewhere. We sent Barnes out to run some errands, and- what?"_ _

__Peter was pale as a ghost with eyes wide as saucers. "Are- are you _kidding _me, Mr. Stark?"___ _

____"You'll be fine, Pete. Just-" The elevator opened, effectively cutting him off, and he was met by four pairs of eyes staring at them. "Peter, this is everyone. Everyone this is Peter."_ _ _ _

____Steve was the first one to get up and hold out a hand to Peter. "Hi, I'm Steve Rogers. Nice to meet you."_ _ _ _

____Peter stared and his hand before shakily taking and it letting out a nervous laugh. "Uh, hello. Hi. Hi, Mr. Captain America." Peter looked at Tony. "He's Captain America," he said under his breath, and Tony held back a laugh._ _ _ _

____"You can just call me Steve." Steve had a warm smile on his face too, and Tony knew Peter had already won him over._ _ _ _

____The rest of the introductions went smoothly, despite the kid being wildly starstruck almost every time he was acknowledged. Even Natasha was smiling by the time they were gathered back around the couch._ _ _ _

____"So, kid, I'll show you your room, then we can have some dinner."_ _ _ _

____"Right. My room." His voice sounded breathy and overwhelmed, so Tony grabbed his shoulder and led him out of the room._ _ _ _

____PETER  
To say Peter was overwhelmed was an understatement. His heart literally hadn't stopped racing since he walked in the building, and his enhanced senses were going haywire. He honestly felt like he was going to pass out._ _ _ _

____"In here is your room. You can decorate it however, I wasn't sure what you like so sorry it's not much."_ _ _ _

____Peter gaped. He couldn't believe Tony said the words "not much" in regards to this room. It was huge. Like, bigger than any room should be. There was a king sized bed against the far wall with a desk across from it. A TV nearly the length of the wall was next to him.___ _

______"Mr. Stark, this is way too much," he whispered._ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony scrunched his eyebrows. "No, it's fine, kid." He walked to the doors. "Here's the bathroom, and then this one over here's the closet."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter shook his head before holding up his backpack with a sad laugh. "This is everything I own. I- I have three shirts. Two pairs of pants, I can't- I don't deserve all of this."_ _ _ _ _ _

______A pained expression crossed Tony’s face, but it left so quickly Peter thought he might've imagined it. "You- you do, Peter. Any employee of mine deserves only the best, you know. And let's go shopping after dinner, yeah? We can fix the whole ‘everything you own can fit in a duffle bag’ thing."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter laughed a little. "No, that's not what I-"_ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony cut him off. "Nope, you're representing the Stark brand now. Street-kid-couture is not what we're going for." Peter full on laughed now, and saw some of the tension leave Tony's shoulders._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Okay, you're right. I'm an employee, I have to look the part."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony just smiled and ruffled his hair a little._ _ _ _ _ _

______CLINT  
Dinner went by surprisingly smoothly, all things considered. After the kid grew more comfortable around them, his personality came out, and everyone found out that he wasn't as quiet as they initially thought. In fact, he had a pretty big mouth on him._ _ _ _ _ _

______"I swear, that trip shaved off at least five years off my life," Tony said as they reminisced._ _ _ _ _ _

______"That's a shame, Mr. Stark, that means you've only got, what? Three years left? Four tops?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony blanched. "I'm not that old, Peter!"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"That gray hair says otherwise," Peter said with a smirk, and the table collectively burst out laughing._ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony was shaking his head, but couldn't keep the scowl on his face. "If I have any gray hair, it's these guys's fault, and not my own."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"It's alright, Tony," Steve said before honest to God _giggling _. "Everyone ages."___ _ _ _ _ _

________Tony threw his hands in the air. "You're like a thousand years old, Rogers! You don't get any input here." Natasha looked like she was going to quip back, so Tony continued on. "You know what? Pete and I have some shopping to do, right kid? So we've got to go. I hope everyone feels an immense loss and sadness at our absence."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Clint cocked his head. "What do you need?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Wouldn't you like to know? Come on, kid. Let's go."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Peter hopped up, grinning wildly. "Uh, bye guys! Thanks for talking to me. You're all super cool."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"See you when you get back," Bruce said and Peter's eyes lit up even more._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________When Tony and Peter were gone, the room fell silent._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"I like him," Natasha said simply, and Steve laughed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"We all like him, Nat. I think it'll be good. He brings a good energy to this place."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Clint agreed, but he couldn't help let his nerves get in the way a little. How was this all going to end? He worried about them, but also the kid himself. So many things could go wrong._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________His thoughts must've been showing on his face, because Bruce asked, "Everything okay, Clint?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He shook his thoughts off. "Of course."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Just then, Bucky walked in, and Steve jumped up to greet him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Buck, wait until you meet this kid that works with us now. He's awesome," he said with a wide smile._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Clint's worries evaporated. He was just being overly dramatic. Everything would be fine._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Right?_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> KIND OF SHORT, SORRY. 
> 
> Thanks for all the love you guys have sent my way, wow I'm soft. You guys are amazing and ily so much <33 More soon!


	5. Chapter 5

PETER  
Peter had been living with the Avengers for a week, and it had been the craziest week of his life.

One morning he walked downstairs and Thor was there casually swinging his hammer. _Thor _.__

__He met Bucky Barnes his second night, and he was still trying to figure him out. Peter was fairly certain Bucky was doing the same to him, with all of his quiet, watchful looks._ _

__All in all, it'd been good. Peter was in the lab most of the time with Bruce, and it was more fun than work. He couldn't believe he got to stay here for just helping out like this. Tony was around a lot, always working with them or stealing Peter for questions of his own on his stuff._ _

__The only problem was that he hadn't gone out patrolling, and it was eating away at him. Every night he spent hanging around the Avengers doing nothing was another night the knot of anxiety in his gut grew, until one day he couldn't sit around any longer._ _

__"Alright guys, I'm going to go to bed."_ _

__Tony's eyebrows shot up. "It's only nine o'clock. You feeling okay, kid? Are you sick?" Peter thought he heard Natasha stifle a laugh, but Steve was talking before he could see why._ _

__"You worked hard today, Peter. Don't let Tony convince you to stay up later than you want." Tony rolled his eyes after Steve finished talking._ _

__Peter grinned. "Alright, see you guys tomorrow. Eight o'clock tomorrow, right Mr. Banner?"_ _

__"Yes, and call me Bruce, man, we've talked about this," Bruce said with a chuckle._ _

__"Right, right. Sorry, Bruce." And with that, Peter scrambled upstairs._ _

__Peter had been able to sneak some things for himself while out with Tony, or even in the lab, so he was honestly excited to see how everything came together. He quickly went to the very last drawer and took out his makeshift outfit and grabbed the web fluid he concocted from the lab._ _

__"Hey, FRIDAY?" The day after Peter moved in, he was shocked by the special surprise of Tony's AI booming throughout the room. Peter had since gotten used to her. "Is Mr. Stark notified when I leave the building?"_ _

__"Mr. Stark is not notified when you leave."_ _

__Peter whooped. "Nice! So there's no way he'd know if I left?"_ _

__"He would only know if he specifically asks where you are and you are not here."_ _

__"Great, thanks, FRIDAY!" Peter said before opening his window and climbing down the building._ _

__His night out patrolling went great, and Peter was finally feeling refreshed, like he was making a difference again. He crawled into bed that night exhausted and, to his amazement, genuinely happy._ _

__TONY  
Tony was sitting at breakfast and had just said goodbye to Pepper when Peter walked down yawning with messy hair and a black eye, effectively making Tony's jaw drop._ _

__"Peter Parker, what the hell happened to you?" he yelled as he walked over to the kid. "How do you have a black eye? How? You were just sleeping!"_ _

__Peter's eyes widened and he blushed. "I- uh, I got up to go to the bathroom and I tripped." Peter heard someone laugh behind Tony._ _

__"On your eye?" Peter slowly nodded. "FRIDAY, did Mr. Parker here trip last night and fall on his _eye _?"___ _

____"Wait wait wait, fine, I left!" Peter interrupted before FRIDAY could answer Tony. "I was hungry and I was craving those chips they only sell at the gas station down the street and there were these kids beating on this guy. I didn't think it was that big of a deal."_ _ _ _

____Tony gaped. "You got in a fight? Actually don't answer that," he said before Peter could reply, and he sighed. "Peter, you can't just leave in the middle of the night without telling anyone. You live here, you're not-" He cut off and ran a hand down his face. "I'm responsible for you, kid. You could've gotten seriously hurt. You _did _get hurt. That's not- that's not okay with me."___ _ _ _

______Peter lowered his gaze. "Right, sorry, Mr. Stark. I'm just not used to... yeah, I'm sorry."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony finally let some of the tension leave his shoulders. "Okay. Now go see Bruce."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Wait, what? Why?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Go have him check you out. You were in a fight, for God's sake, and you obviously have a level of self preservation close to mine -which we'll work on- and I don't trust you not to be lying to me. So go let Bruce make sure you're all in one piece. Non negotiable."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter groaned and rolled his eyes as he turned around. "Fine. Don't eat all the pancakes."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony turned around as was met with three pairs of amused eyes. "What?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______Natasha spoke first. "Nothing, it's just-"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Actually no, I know what you’re going to say, but I know you all wanted to say the same thing, so, no, I wasn't too hard on him. We can't have him roaming the streets in the night! Come on, you guys have to agree with me. Cap?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______Steve grinned. "I don't think that's what Nat was going to say, but you're right. It's not safe out there at night. I can't believe he got into a fight."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"I think it was brave," Bucky said. "When smaller kids are getting picked on... you can't just sit by. The fact that he jumped in says a lot about him."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony took a deep breath. "Fine, it was brave, but it was also stupid. It's not his responsibility to stop some kid from getting his lunch money snatched. Not at his own expense."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Natasha laughed. "Isn't that a little hypocritical? I mean, that's basically all we do."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Tony threw his hands in the air. "Because that's our job! His is my intern. You know, help Bruce and me in the lab, fetch us coffee, etcetera. Not throwing himself into danger. That's our job. That's _my _job."___ _ _ _ _ _

________Bucky hummed a little. "Remember when you mentioned your alarmingly low level of self preservation?" Tony just glared at him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________A few minutes later, Peter strutted back in. "Alright, Bruce said I was fine. See, Mr. Stark? All in one piece, just like I said."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Shut up and eat your pancakes, you little twerp," Tony said as he ruffled Peter's hair before walking past him and pouring him a glass of water._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Peter just smiled and swallowed a bite of his pancakes. "So what's the plan for today?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________BUCKY  
Bucky Barnes was weary of the new kid. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________To be fair, he was weary of _anyone _he didn't know, but it was so out of the blue. All the sudden this person was living with them, in all their lives, and Bucky knew nothing about him.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________So he watched and learned. He learned whatever he could about Peter Parker, and he quickly came to the conclusion that he was harmless, but it wasn't until that breakfast that he was totally sold on the kid._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"He put himself in danger for the sake of someone that needed his help," Bucky said when Peter and Tony had left to meet Bruce in the lab. "That's brave."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"He's going to give Stark an aneurism," Natasha said with a smirk. "He went full dad mode."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Steve pointed to her. "You never repeat that to Tony. He can't handle thinking like that. It'll break him." She rolled her eyes, still smiling, and Steve continued. "Anyways, I know you've got a soft spot for helpless kids, Buck, but Tony was right. Peter's, like, fifteen. He's the one we should be protecting, not the one doing the protecting."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Bucky shrugged, unable to argue that. Thoughts of Steve being beaten up for being small flashed in the front of his mind, and he was glad Peter was able to help some kid going through the same thing_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Later that night, Bucky decided to talk to the kid._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Peter? You in there?" he called as he knocked on the door._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________He heard a thump before Peter replied, "Uh, yeah. Give me a sec." A moment passed and then the door swung open. "What's up?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Bucky grinned and let himself in. "Listen, I just wanted to say that I think what you did was really brave. I'm not the biggest fan of bullies, and you stopped some for the sake of a random kid. I think that's really cool."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Peter's eyes were wide. "Really? You think that? Th- thanks, man. It's just- I couldn't just let something like that happen, you know?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Bucky softened. "I know." There was a beat of silence and Peter looked like he was having an internal debate. "Everything okay?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Yeah, yeah, it's just I..." Peter faded off and then he shook his head. "It's nothing."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Bucky squinted. "Are you sure?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Peter's face faltered for a second before he straightened his features. "Yeah. I just think it's cool that you think that."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________"But don't tell Tony I said that. He'd think I'm encouraging you to run into fights, and then _I'd _be the one in trouble."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __

____________Peter laughed, loud and full, and Bucky couldn't help but laugh a little too. "It's weird," Peter said. "I'm not used to someone worrying. Now I've got a bunch of people. It's going to take some adjusting."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Bucky's heart clenched and he said, "Get used to it, kid," before Peter smiled back._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________So Bucky liked the kid. A lot._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Despite the fact that he was definitely hiding something from them._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU ALL ARE SO SWEET OMG. Every comment, every kudos, means the world to me <3 Y'all know how to make a soft bitch cry, that's for sure :,,)

TONY  
Honestly, Tony should've anticipated something like this. The kid had been with them for a couple weeks and he _was _a minor. It was only a matter of time before CPS found out he wasn't with his foster family anymore and came looking for him.__

__"Boss, there's someone out front looking for Mr. Parker."_ _

__Tony, Steve, Natasha, and Bucky stilled and turned to Peter, who had headlights for eyes. "Who is it?" Tony asked, feeling slightly uneasy._ _

__"He said he is Jerry Leighton from Child Protective Services."_ _

__Peter's face immediately paled. "Jerry's here? Damn it."_ _

__"Language," Steve mumbled quietly, but no one acknowledged him._ _

__Instead, Tony asked, "What does he want?"_ _

__"To take me away," Peter said quietly. He cleared his throat before schooling his features. "It's alright, guys. I knew this was only temporary. Legally they need to put me somewhere, but it's fine." Tony felt frozen. "I can... I can still come in for the internship if you want?"_ _

__"No," Tony said and Peter's face fell, so Tony continued, elaborating. "I mean, yes, but _no _. No, they're not taking you. Are you kidding? Who knows where they'd put you. No. No way. I'll figure this out."___ _

____Peter's expression cracked a little and his eyes swam slightly before he shook his head. "You don't have to, Mr. Stark. You've done so much for me, I don't want to inconvenience you anymore. I swear it'll be okay. Not all the homes are bad."_ _ _ _

____Tony gaped. "'Not all the homes are bad'? Sorry, that's not good enough for me. Is that good enough for anyone else?" Tony looked around the room at the Avengers that were present. They all shook their heads almost in unison. "Not good enough for them either, Pete."_ _ _ _

____Peter looked pained. "There's nothing that can be done," he said. "I need to be placed somewhere. I promise I'll be okay."_ _ _ _

____Tony didn't even respond. Instead, he stood up quickly and walked to the elevator, rushing down to talk to this Jerry douchebag._ _ _ _

____"FRIDAY, take me to Jerry Leighton. And tell Pepper to meet us in the lobby."_ _ _ _

____When he stepped off the elevator, he saw an older man in a cheap suit with permanent frown lines. Tony hated him already._ _ _ _

____"Tony Stark," he said with a scowl. Apparently he hated Tony already too._ _ _ _

____"Jerry Leighton," Tony replied back. "Peter told me about you. So nice to meet you."_ _ _ _

____"Just give me Mr. Parker back. I know you think you're above the law, Stark, but this is a child we're talking about."_ _ _ _

____Tony scoffed. "Exactly, this is a child, and right now he's in one of the safest facilities in the world with people that want to keep him safe. Why would you take him away from that?"_ _ _ _

____Jerry rolled his eyes. "I don't know what to tell you. The kid needs to legally have a place of living."_ _ _ _

____Just then, Pepper strode in, looking alarmed. "Tony, what's going on? Who is this?"_ _ _ _

____"Hello, honey. This here is our new friend Jerry Leighton from CPS. He's trying to take Peter away and place him in a foster home."_ _ _ _

____Pepper's jaw dropped. "Wha- no! Why would you make him leave a place where he's safe and happy?"_ _ _ _

____"The law is the law," Jerry said tiredly. "I was telling this to Mr. Stark, Peter needs to legally-"_ _ _ _

____"We'll do it," Tony said abruptly, not knowing why he didn't just do this earlier. "We can- we can foster him."_ _ _ _

____Jerry looked at him wide skeptical eyes and arched eyebrows. "You? You want to foster him?"_ _ _ _

____Tony nodded. "Yup."_ _ _ _

____"You have no idea what you're doing, Stark."_ _ _ _

____Tony thought about that. Maybe he didn't, but he knew he wasn't about to leave Peter to the mercies of the foster care system again, not knowing how that ended up the last time._ _ _ _

____"You can go now, Jerry. Contact my lawyers when you get back for the legal shit. You're not taking the kid today or ever." Jerry just scowled even harder before walking away._ _ _ _

____Tony slowly turned to Pepper, realizing he didn't even ask her if that was okay. "That's... I mean, you're cool with that?" he asked slightly nervously._ _ _ _

____"Of course I'm okay with that," she said strongly._ _ _ _

____"It's really just legal documents so he can stay here for awhile. Nothing's going to change."_ _ _ _

____Pepper looked at him with a smile and an expression he couldn't identify._ _ _ _

____PETER  
Peter had been nervously tapping his foot from the moment Tony left. He was going to come back up any minute and tell Peter to pack it up and go with Jerry. Peter knew this because he knew that Tony didn't have a choice. There was nothing he could do for him now._ _ _ _

____Peter just hoped he'd be able to keep the internship even if he couldn't stay here anymore. It would kill him to give that up too._ _ _ _

____"What do you think... what do you think is taking so long?" Peter whispered._ _ _ _

____"I'm sure Tony's kicking that guy's ass," Bucky said strongly. "Don't worry. He won't let you go anywhere."_ _ _ _

____"You don't understand," Peter practically whined, the distress evident in his voice. "He doesn't have a choice!"_ _ _ _

____Suddenly the elevator dinged, and Tony strode out with Pepper. "Who doesn't have a choice?"_ _ _ _

____Everybody except Peter jumped up. "What happened?" Natasha asked immediately._ _ _ _

____"Everything's squared away," Tony said back, and Peter froze._ _ _ _

____One, two, three seconds passed before Peter could find his voice. "What do you mean?"_ _ _ _

____"It's all good, kid," Tony said casually. "Our lawyers are being sent the paperwork now."_ _ _ _

____Peter paused and blinked, still not comprehending what he was hearing. "I don't- I don't understand."_ _ _ _

____"I've been told the law is the law, and so I decided to run with it instead of fighting it, so legally, Pepper and I are going to be your foster parents."_ _ _ _

____"You can't be serious," Peter said and he cursed himself when his eyes started welling up. "I can't do that to you, Mr. Stark. You don't- you shouldn't do this because you feel like you have to. I'd be okay, I-"_ _ _ _

____"Pete," Tony said in a strained voice, the casualness from moments earlier slowly leaking away. "We want to do this."_ _ _ _

____"But _why _?"___ _ _ _

______Tony chuckled. "Why? Because we like you, kid. All of us like you. You know, for a smart kid, you sure can be dense when it comes to self awareness."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Steve cut in with, "That's Tony talk for 'when will you realize you're not a burden'."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"But-"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"We're going to work on your crippling low self-esteem, alright? You're too bright to think so little of yourself," Tony chimed in._ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter lowered his head, trying to get his emotions under control. The last time someone genuinely looked out for him was when May was still around. He'd gotten so used to the coldness and calculated, unfeeling ways of the foster care system, and the fact that Tony Stark and the Avengers were standing their ground and fighting for him had him about three seconds away from breaking down._ _ _ _ _ _

______"If you'll excuse us, I've got to talk to Peter about some legal stuff upstairs. Come on, kid," Tony said as he wrapped an arm around his shoulders and led him towards the elevator._ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter was shaking the entire way there, and almost as soon as they were away from everyone else, Peter covered his face with his hands and started crying in a way that he hadn't in months._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Peter," Tony said softly with a small sigh before tugging him closer to him._ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter clutched onto Tony like a lifeline, burying his face into his shoulder. Tony just made quiet shushing noises as he held him and ran his fingers through Peter's hair._ _ _ _ _ _

______"I'm- I'm sorry. I don't know what- I don't know why-"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"It's alright, Pete. You don't have to apologize," Tony said back gently, causing a fresh wave of tears to run down his face._ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter didn't know how much time had passed, only that he was exhausted when he pulled away from Tony. "Thank you, Tony. For everything. I don't even know how to start to-"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Sh, you don't need to thank me, Peter. It's alright." Tony clicked a button on the elevator and only then did Peter realize they hadn't been moving. Tony tugged him back against his side. "Come on. You look like you need a nap."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter let out a watery laugh. "I'm not four," he protested even though his eyes grew heavy just at the thought of his bed. He had to admit, he hadn't been sleeping very well the past week. He was either too anxious about this very situation happening or out patrolling. "Didn't you have legal things you needed to talk to me about?_ _ _ _ _ _

______The elevator opened and they walked towards Peter's room. "Oh, I just said that 'cause it looked like you needed an out. I mean, there is some stuff that I need to go over with you, but that can wait."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Are you sure?" Peter mumbled tiredly and flopped on his bed._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Yeah. I'm sure, kiddo."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter smiled and whispered, "Thank you," and something else he couldn't remember before drifting off to sleep._ _ _ _ _ _

______NATASHA  
"So," Natasha said to Pepper a few minutes after Peter and Tony left. "Foster parents, huh?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______Pepper nodded. "I mean, we couldn't let them take him, right?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Right, I guess I'm just surprised Tony's willing to take on that title." Everyone knew Tony had issues with his parents, his dad in particular, and he tended to turn away from emotions and responsibility._ _ _ _ _ _

______Pepper chuckled. "He said it was just legal documents so Peter could stay here, and I think he actually believes he's telling the truth."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"They really are a lot alike when you think about it," Steve said._ _ _ _ _ _

______There was a pause before the elevator opened and Bruce walked in. He paused, sensing the heavy mood. "What's going on?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"CPS came looking for Peter," Natasha replied and Bruce's eyes widened. "Everything got worked out, but the kid was really shaken up."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"How did it get worked out? Is Peter okay?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Tony and I are legally becoming his foster parents," Pepper said. "And he's alright, Tony's with him."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Bruce's jaw dropped. "Seriously? That's- well, I guess not entirely unexpected, I guess."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Natasha cocked her head. "You expected this?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Kind of," Bruce said, smiling softly at her. "I mean, we had to have known someone was going to come looking for him, right? And I've seen how Tony is with him. I knew there was no way he'd turn him over, so yeah. Not entirely unexpected."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Natasha saw Bucky shift in his seat nervously. "I feel like we should go check on him. See if he's okay."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"FRIDAY, are Peter and Tony okay?" Pepper said immediately and Bucky shot her an appreciative smile._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Mr. Parker is asleep in his bed. He seems to have exhausted himself on the elevator, and Boss is sitting in the chair next to the bed reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone, which I believe to be one of Peter's books."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Natasha couldn't even smile at the fact that Stark was reading Harry Potter. "Exhausted himself?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Mr. Parker was very distraught on the way up to his room. Boss had to stop the elevator for seven minutes and thirty three seconds."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Why didn't Tony come back down?" Bucky asked. He obviously was anxious to ask him how Peter was._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Because Mr. Parker asked him to stay."_ _ _ _ _ _

______It wasn't a big thing really, but it _felt _like a big thing. It felt like everything, and based on the looks on everyone's faces, she wasn't the only one who thought so.___ _ _ _ _ _

________Steve smiled a little. "Well, that just says it all."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Natasha couldn't have said it better herself._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	7. Chapter 7

PETER  
After Peter's little breakdown, he surprisingly felt a lot better. He spent his days hanging out either in the lab or with the other Avengers. He finally felt like he fit in amongst the group.

It was after the official foster home paperwork came in that the nightmares started, and they were relentless. Almost every night he was awoken by vivid images of the team getting killed, and it didn't take a psychologist to tell Peter why. He'd lost everyone that ever cared for him, so it wasn't particularly surprising when the first nightmare came in hot, leaving Peter gasping for breath and crying out with Tony's name on his lips as he startled himself awake.

They got worse each night until one night after watching Natasha and Bruce get shot while he stood by helplessly, he decided he just wasn't going to go back to bed. He couldn't have nightmares if he wasn't asleep.

Instead of sleep, Peter went patrolling. It made him feel better, less powerless. He was helping people instead of watching the people he cared about dying. 

The only problem was that, yeah, Peter did need sleep at some point. His superpowers didn't eliminate his need for rest, so he often found himself drifting off during the day at random times.

"Kid, what's going on with you?" Tony asked one day. "You look like you haven't slept in days."

"Nothing," Peter said with a yawn. "I'm fifteen. I'm always tired." 

Tony chuckled. "Touche. Just go to bed earlier tonight, okay?"

And life went on. Everything was going alright until one day Peter stood up too fast when he and Bucky were playing some video game and he collapsed onto the floor. He was probably only down for a few seconds, but it was enough for Bucky to notify Tony and Bruce.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Peter grumbled as he rubbed his head a little.

"Just lay down, Peter, Bruce is on his way up to look at you," Bucky said with a frantic note in his voice.

"No, it's okay-"

Tony and Bruce rushed into the room. "What happened? Pete, you alright?" 

"I'm fine, Tony. I was just lightheaded." Bruce was already pulling things out of his bag. Peter laughed a little when he wrapped a blood pressure cuff around his arm.

"Are you eating enough? Drinking enough? Sleeping enough?" Tony paused when he saw Peter's expression falter. "Are you sleeping okay, Peter?"

"Yeah," Peter said, but it sounded weak even to his own ears.

Peter groaned when Tony said, "FRIDAY, has Peter been sleeping okay?" He hated when he resorted to FRIDAY to tattle on him.

"Peter sleeps around two hours a night, with the addition of naps throughout the day." Tony's eyes widened and Bucky crossed his arms. He's sure Bruce would've also had a disapproving look on his face if he wasn't busy taking Peter's vitals.

" _Two hours _?" Tony said. "What's going on, kid? Why aren't you sleeping?" Peter shrugged. "Come on. Talk to me."__

__The softness in his voice had Peter caving. "It's just- the nightmares," he mumbled._ _

__"Nightmares?"_ _

__"Yeah. It's stupid." He shrugged again._ _

__Bucky had a sad smile on his face. "No, it's not. You're talking to three people who are very well versed in nightmares. We know how ugly they can get."_ _

__"Want to talk about it?" Bruce asked._ _

__Peter laughed a little. "Not really. It's embarrassing."_ _

__"Kid," Tony said with a pointed look, and Peter sighed._ _

__"It's- it's nothing. It's just always..." He sighed. "It's you guys. Dying, dead, hurt, wounded. All that fun stuff."_ _

__"Peter..." Tony said sadly._ _

__"I know, I know. I don't need a therapist to tell me I've got minor abandonment issues. Everyone that's cared about me has died. It's fine. I'm working through it." Peter abruptly stood up and left before they could say anything else._ _

__TONY  
"Well, shit. What do we do now?" Tony said dejectedly after Peter walked away. He hated knowing that Peter had been having nightmares like that. He knew how horribly vivid they could be._ _

__Bucky shrugged, looking sad. "I don't know."_ _

__It was later that night that Tony had an epiphany. "FRIDAY, tell everyone to meet me in the living room. And to bring their sleeping stuff."_ _

__Ten minutes later, the entire team of confused Avengers plus Peter were gathered around. "What's going on, Stark?" Natasha said._ _

__"I'm glad you asked, Nat. We're having, for lack of a better term, a slumber party."_ _

__Wanda laughed. "What?"_ _

__"You heard me." Peter, Bucky, and Bruce were the only ones that didn't look completely confused._ _

__"Mr. Stark-"_ _

__"No, Pete. This is happening." See, after Tony had done some thinking, he figured it would help the kid to be around all of them. That way he'd know they were all safe._ _

__Steve shared a look with Bucky. "Sounds like fun," he said. "I call dibs on the couch." And just like that, everyone sprang into action, each person trying to get the best spot._ _

__Peter walked to Tony amidst the chaos. "I know what you're doing," he said before smiling shyly. "Thank you."_ _

__Tony wrapped an arm around the kid's shoulder and tugged him against him. "No problem, kid."_ _

__Tony grinned when Peter pulled away and flopped onto the smallest bed in the center of the room where he was surrounded by the laughs and bickering of the rest of the team._ _

__BUCKY  
Bucky didn't sleep that night. He was laying there on his phone that Stark gave him, scrolling through various pop culture websites as he tried to keep up while also waiting for Peter to inevitably startle awake._ _

__He heard a snore and when he looked over, he saw Steve's neck bent at an uncomfortable angle._ _

__"Idiot," Bucky mumbled fondly before just pulling him against him. He knew he'd never hear the end of it if Steve woke up with knots in his neck._ _

__Steve sighed contentedly and melted into Bucky, giving Bucky flashbacks of when they were just kids. So much had changed but then again, at least the important stuff, the stuff like this, didn't._ _

__It was two hours after everyone fell asleep that he heard a whimper. Bucky put down his phone and was about to shift Steve and sit up so he could wake the kid up when Peter jumped up, gasping. Bucky didn't even have time to move before Peter was rushing out of the room._ _

__Bucky pushed away his confusion and slipped away from Steve as he followed him._ _

__"FRIDAY?" Bucky heard Peter's shaky voice through the door. "Remember what we talked about? No telling anyone, especially Mr. Stark."_ _

__The AI hesitated before replying, "Of course, Mr. Parker."_ _

__Bucky was stunned. He'd known Peter was hiding something from that one day, but he still didn't know what it was. And he also had no idea how Peter somehow got FRIDAY to keep things from _Tony _, the person who created her, but he somehow did. If there was one thing that Bucky knew, it was that he getting his answers tonight.___ _

____"Alright, FRI. I'll be back later."_ _ _ _

____Bucky froze when he heard the window open. There's no way the kid was jumping out the window, right? He's smarter than that-_ _ _ _

____"Stay safe, Mr. Parker." And that was it for Bucky. He busted through the door just in time to see Peter jump out the window wearing some red pajamas. Bucky rushed to the window, expecting to see a flattened Peter pancake, but instead he heard whooping laughter and saw the kid swinging through the air._ _ _ _

____"What... the hell," Bucky muttered. He didn't know how long he stood at that window before he turned around and sat on the kids bed. "FRIDAY, what was that?" Silence. "FRIDAY?"_ _ _ _

____"Yes, Mr. Barnes?"_ _ _ _

____"Where did Peter go?"_ _ _ _

____There was a beat of silence. "Mr. Parker is in the bathroom."_ _ _ _

____Bucky gaped. "What did that kid do to you, FRI?"_ _ _ _

____He wasn't entirely proud of it, but Bucky started snooping. It wasn't his fault. Maybe if the kid hadn't scrambled FRIDAY then he wouldn't have had to resort to this._ _ _ _

____The puzzle pieces fell into place when he found vials and blueprints, and Bucky realized it was web fluid._ _ _ _

____Some time during all of Bucky's time catching up with the times, he'd stumbled across the Spiderman on youtube. He brought him up to the other Avengers, but everyone assumed the videos were photoshopped. Besides, what would they do even if they weren't? Spiderman's M.O was all little stuff. Stuff that didn't even show up as a blip of the Avengers radar._ _ _ _

____Bucky had three hours to digest the news and worry for Peter before he got back._ _ _ _

____He was sitting in the corner of the room when the window slid back opened and Peter crawled in. He hesitated, looking around the room, and he let out a startled yelp when Bucky came out of the shadows._ _ _ _

____"So," Bucky said as he took in the sight of Peter in his makeshift costume. "You're Spiderman?" Peter didn't respond, looking like a deer in headlight. Bucky shook his head. "Goddamn. What are the odds?" Bucky really was baffled that Stark managed to unknowingly bring in the only other superhero in New York._ _ _ _

____"Bucky-"_ _ _ _

____"Tony's going to kill you, kid," Bucky said, and maybe he was overly tired too because he started laughing. His laughs seemed to stun Peter. "Not only have you been sneaking out and putting yourself in danger, but you also _broke _FRIDAY. You know how Tony is with his AI's."___ _ _ _

______Peter paled. "I didn't- I didn't break her! I just changed some of her programming."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Bucky shook his head, some of his momentary hysteria wearing off. "You have to tell him."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"What? No!" Peter shook his head. "What if he doesn't let me patrol? Or- or what if he thinks I'm some freak? I mean, I was bitten by a radioactive spider for God's sake, that's pretty freakin' weird. Or what if he thinks I'm too much work now? What if he makes me leave? Please, Bucky, please don't-"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Hey, calm down, Peter," Bucky said as Peter's breaths got more and more frantic._ _ _ _ _ _

______"He can't know, please." Peter's eyes were getting watery and Bucky felt himself crack a little._ _ _ _ _ _

______There was a brief pause. "Here's what we're going to do, okay?" Bucky sighed. "We won't tell him for now. For now." The only reason he was allowing even this was because of the blatant fear in Peter's eyes. "But you're going to tell me every time you go out. And I mean every time. I've heard about you. About Spiderman. You keep an eye out for the little guy, right? Stick with that. If I hear anything about Spiderman getting involved with bigger things, I'm telling Tony. Any time you get so much as a bruise, you tell me." Bucky rubbed at his eyes. "I promise you Peter, Tony wouldn't care. Well, he would care. He would care that you're in danger, but not about the other stuff. I mean, just look at who his friends are."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter still looked scared. "Thank you, Bucky."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"This isn't indefinitely, Pete. He's going to have to find out. Your his foster kid. I'm pretty sure he's going to kill me as soon as he finds out I didn't tell him."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"I'm so sorry, I just-" he cut off and covered the guilty expression on his face with his hands._ _ _ _ _ _

______Bucky rubbed his back in what he hoped was a comforting way. "It's alright, kid. We'll figure this out."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Peter nodded, and there was a knock on the door. "Peter, you in there?" Tony's voice rang through the door._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Yeah," Peter yelled. "Just about to jump in the shower."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Alright, I'm making breakfast, so come on out when you're done."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Okay."_ _ _ _ _ _

______Bucky locked eyes with Peter as they heard Tony walked away, and Bucky had only one thought._ _ _ _ _ _

______He was so screwed._ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOO another Bucky bc if it wasn't obvious my guys gonna have a pretty substantial role with Peter. And it also looks like I'm going with some background Stucky which!!! How fun!


	8. Chapter 8

PETER  
To say Peter had been stressed lately would be an understatement of epic proportions.

Bucky knew he was Spiderman. He knew, and every time Peter looked at him, he could tell he was dying to tell Tony. Peter felt kind of bad about that. He didn't want to make Bucky keep secrets, but he _was _the one that followed Peter, so it wasn't his fault.__

__Another thing was that Tony's been talking about the school year. He said everything's squared away and that he's good to start in a couple weeks with his classmates, but Peter couldn’t help but be more anxious than excited. He had no idea what to expect. He was an orphan now, yes, and his classmates were well aware of that, but no one knew Tony Stark and Pepper Potts were fostering him. While Peter was fairly certain he could get away with not telling anyone besides Ned, he still worried a bit about what people would say if they found out. He didn't want to hear about how he wasn't good enough to be living with Tony and the Avengers, and that they were probably going to kick him out soon, anyways. Nope. Didn't need to hear that._ _

__Peter sighed and ran a hand down his face before picking up the phone. He figured he owed Ned a phone call._ _

__It ran once, twice, three times before Ned's sleepy voice was in his ear. "'Ello?"_ _

__"Ned? Hey, it's me."_ _

__"Peter?" Ned said loudly, more awake now. "Holy shit, man, it's so good to hear from you. I've been so worried. I tried calling that number you gave me before I left, but the guy said you weren't there. You were never there, and I was so worried because I know how-"_ _

__"Ned," Peter cut him off, some of the tension that's been in his shoulders slipping away. "It's alright. I'm good."_ _

__There was a pause. "I was really worried."_ _

__Peter felt himself get slightly choked up at the sincerity and concern in his voice, so he felt the need change the mood. "I'm okay. But, dude, you'll never guess where I'm staying."_ _

__Ned exhaled with a little laugh and asked, "Where?"_ _

__"If I, uh, tell you then you can't tell anyone else, alright?"_ _

__"Okay, now I'm intrigued."_ _

__"I'm staying with Tony Stark and Pepper Potts at the Tower."_ _

__There was a loud clanging noise on the other end, and Peter made the assumption that Ned dropped the phone. "Wait, what! You're staying with the Avengers? But- how? When?"_ _

__Peter laughed. "It's a long story. I'll tell you when you get back."_ _

__"Oh man, I don't know how I'm going to go back to escorting my aunt around. I still can't believe she broke both her arms _and _legs. How does someone even do that?" So that was the family emergency. Good to know.___ _

____Just then, Tony walked in and his eyes widened when he saw Peter on the phone._ _ _ _

____"Are you actually using the phone? You mean to tell me that you have friends to talk to? I am shocked."_ _ _ _

____Peter laughed and threw a pillow at him, which he dodged easily. "Shut up, Tony. Yes, I do have a friend. Just the one, though."_ _ _ _

____"Is it that Ned guy? With the house you were squatting at?" Peter blushed before nodding, and ignored the way Ned was repeating the words, "Tony? You mean Tony Stark?" in his ear. "Why don't you tell him to come over some time. You can't be neglecting the only friend you've got, now can you?"_ _ _ _

____"Y- yeah. I'll ask him." Tony smiled and left. "So, do you want to come over when you get back?"_ _ _ _

____"Holy shit, yes! Did Tony Stark just tell you to ask me to come over? This is the greatest day of my life."_ _ _ _

____Before Peter could respond, red light's suddenly lit up the building, and Peter's heart started racing. "I've got to go, Ned. I'll call you later." He hung up and immediately got up and asked FRIDAY where everyone was._ _ _ _

____"They are going to the roof." Peter knew what that meant. There was a new mission._ _ _ _

____Peter's feet were taking him to the other Avengers before he could even register he was moving, and before he knew it, he was standing in front of Tony and Wanda as the rest were already in the quinjet._ _ _ _

____"Hey, Pete," Tony said casually. "We've got to go take care of something real quick, we'll be back-"_ _ _ _

____"No!" Peter said frantically. His nerves and racing heart stripped away any filter he had and left him and his thoughts exposed. "You- you'll die! They all die, you can't die-"_ _ _ _

____"Whoa, slow down, Peter." His eyebrows were scrunched in concern and he held out his hand, as if trying to calm a wild animal. "Everything’s okay. I'm not going to die. None of us are going to die."_ _ _ _

____Peter felt tears rising in his eyes and he abruptly realized how ridiculous he was being. He was Iron Man, for God's sake. "Sorry," Peter mumbled. "Sorry, I'll just- you can go ahead. I'll be inside."_ _ _ _

____"Peter, wait-" Tony said, but Peter was already gone._ _ _ _

____When Peter got inside the building, he fell to the ground and threw his head between his knees, trying to calm his breathing. Tony would be fine, they were all going to be fine. They were superheroes-_ _ _ _

____Peter sat up, abruptly remembering that he was a superhero too._ _ _ _

____He ran to his room and grabbed his suit before swinging out the window._ _ _ _

____WANDA  
"What was that all about?" Wanda asked concernedly. _ _ _ _

____Tony frowned. "I don't know. Maybe... maybe I should st-"_ _ _ _

____"Stark, Maximoff, let's go!" Steve's voice rang out from behind them in the quinjet. "We don't have all day!"_ _ _ _

____Wanda saw Tony's conflicted expression before turning towards Steve and the others and saying, "I'm coming, old man!"_ _ _ _

____Tony was distracted the entire ride in the quinjet, and she wasn't the only one to notice._ _ _ _

____"What's going on, Stark? It's been almost five minutes and you haven't said a word. I think that's a new record," Natasha said._ _ _ _

____"Nothing, it's just... Peter was acting weird before we left, and I feel like I should've stayed." Wanda saw Tony run a hand over his face and she felt a pang. "I don't know... hey, FRIDAY? What's Peter doing right now?"_ _ _ _

____There was a pause before she said, "Mr. Parker is in the bathroom."_ _ _ _

____"WHAT?" Bucky boomed and they all flinched._ _ _ _

____"The hell is your problem, Barnes?" Wanda grumbled._ _ _ _

____Steve looked at him, concerned. "Buck, what's wrong-"_ _ _ _

____"Chill out, Bucky," Tony said. "The kid's just in the bathroom, it's fine-"_ _ _ _

____"Tony, you don't-"_ _ _ _

____"We have arrived," the AI boomed, and then in a matter of seconds they were all out fighting._ _ _ _

____"Tony," Bucky's voice echoed throughout their coms, "there's something you need to know-"_ _ _ _

____"Now's not the time, Barnes. Little busy over here."_ _ _ _

____Wanda was fighting some mutated animal creature when a red blurb caught her attention. "What is that thing?" she asked over the coms._ _ _ _

____Suddenly Steve spoke up, sounding lively. "No way, that's the Spiderman! Huh. I wasn't even convinced he was real."_ _ _ _

____Wanda watched as Spiderman swung around, taking out the creatures one by one._ _ _ _

____"I mean, do we even have to be here?" Tony scoffed. "This guy looks like he's got it-"_ _ _ _

____"Peter is Spiderman, that's Peter," Bucky quickly said. "He made me promise not to say anything, but-"_ _ _ _

____"What are you talking about?" Tony asked with a small laugh. "Peter Parker isn't Spiderman. I don't believe you."_ _ _ _

____Wanda thought about it, and with each passing second, the more she believed him. It made sense. "Tony, I think we should get Spiderman out of here."_ _ _ _

____Before anyone could do anything there was a loud yell, and they turned to see Spiderman leap in front of one of the things about to jump onto Tony, and then Spiderman fell to the ground motionless, a dark red slowly spreading across his suit,_ _ _ _

____TONY  
Peter Parker wasn't Spiderman. _ _ _ _

____He couldn't be, because Peter Parker was at home, safe, and not bleeding on the ground at Tony's feet._ _ _ _

____So yeah, Tony knew Peter wasn't Spiderman, but that didn't stop him from reaching down and lifting up the mask slightly. Tony's heart sank._ _ _ _

____Well. Peter Parker may be Spiderman._ _ _ _

____"Somebody tell Bruce to be ready in medbay!" Tony yelled as he picked up Peter's unmoving body. "I'm going to kill you, James. You son of a bitch, I'm going to kill you."_ _ _ _

____He ran onto the quinjet with Bucky and Steve close behind as Wanda and Natasha stayed to finish off the last of the creatures. Tony laid Peter down and pressed his hands to where he was bleeding._ _ _ _

____"Tony..."_ _ _ _

____"Shut it, Barnes, before I rip your goddamn head off."_ _ _ _

____"Hey," Steve said sharply. "This wasn't Bucky's fault. If he would've told you, it would've broken the kid's trust. That would've been worse."_ _ _ _

____Tony gaped. "Worse than him bleeding out?" Suddenly Peter coughed and tried sitting up. "Hey, hey, Pete. Lay back down. You're alright. We're taking you to Bruce now."_ _ _ _

____"Tony? But- but-" His eyes widened and he grabbed at his face. It fell when he didn't feel his mask. "I'm sorry, Mr. Stark. I'm sorry-"_ _ _ _

____"Sh, it's okay. We'll talk about it later. We need to get those cuts healed up before we have that fun little talk about why Bucky knew you were Spiderman and not me, and why you threw yourself into battle just then. But that's for later." He carded his fingers through Peter's hair when the kid's eyes started welling up._ _ _ _

____"I was scared. That's why."_ _ _ _

____"Why what?"_ _ _ _

____"Why I didn't tell you I was Spiderman- I was scared you'd kick me out. And why I came today- I was scared you'd get hurt and leave me like they all did."_ _ _ _

____"Peter..." Tony sighed. He really was just a kid._ _ _ _

____"We're here, Tony," Steve said just as Tony felt the plane land._ _ _ _

____"Don't leave me," Peter said as he clutched Tony's hand and slowly lost consciousness again._ _ _ _

____"Don't worry, kid. I'll never leave you." That seemed to be enough for Peter because he smiled a little before falling completely asleep._ _ _ _

____Three hours later, Tony was sitting next to Peter's bed in medbay, and he still hadn't spoken a word to anyone since they landed. He was too busy trying to gather his thoughts._ _ _ _

____Bruce said he was going to be alright, and that he seemed to have enhanced healing because it was already so much better than when he first arrived, but Tony was still worried._ _ _ _

____"Hey," Peter mumbled, making Tony's head snap up._ _ _ _

____"Hey, Pete," Tony said softly. "How're you feeling?"_ _ _ _

____"Like some weird thingy tore apart my chest."_ _ _ _

____"Well that makes sense." There was a beat of silence._ _ _ _

____"I'm sorry," Peter whispered, eyes growing watery. "I'm so sorry."_ _ _ _

____"It's alright, Peter, just... why didn't you tell me? You said something on the quinjet about thinking I'd kick you out? Come on, you know I'd never do that."_ _ _ _

____Peter was shaking slightly. "I just didn't want you to think I was too much work."_ _ _ _

____"You're worth the work, Peter," Tony said immediately. He ran his fingers through Peter's hair like he did before, remembering he liked that, and Peter relaxed again. "Get some rest. We'll talk more about this later, okay?"_ _ _ _

____Peter nodded and yawned, already slipping away from consciousness. "Don't be mad at Bucky," he mumbled. "He was jus' being a good friend." And then he was out._ _ _ _

____Tony sighed._ _ _ _

____What the hell was he supposed to do now?_ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO sorry for the wait! Also sorry if this felt rushed??? I was anxious to get things moving along asjdkajs. And Ned! My boy is back! He'll be hanging around soon. Thanks for reading babes, I love you all <333


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LET ME JUST SAY all your guys’ comments make my day! Y’all are so sweet and I’m trying to get better at replying to them, but if I didn’t then know that ily more than life itself :,,)

TONY  
"So," Rhodey said, "I was barely gone for a couple months and you adopted an orphan-"

"Fostering," Tony mindlessly corrected.

"-who just to happened to turn out to be New York's masked vigilante known as Spiderman." Tony nodded. "I don't even know where to begin, but let's start with what the hell were you thinking?"

"Rhodes, you need to meet him. Once you meet him it will all make sense. He's- he's Peter. He belongs here with us." _With me _, Tony thinks.__

__Rhodey looked at him with an expression he couldn't identify. "This kid means a lot to you."_ _

__It wasn't really a question, but Tony answered it like it was one. "I mean- yeah. We all care about him."_ _

__"What about him being Spiderman? How do you feel about that?"_ _

__Tony sighed and ran a hand down his face. "Honestly, it scares the hell out of me. I don't know..." He trailed off, thinking of all the ways he could finish that sentence. He didn't know what he was doing, he didn't know how to take care of a teenager, he didn't know what to do about Peter being Spiderman. There were a lot of things he didn't know._ _

__Rhodey must've noticed Tony's inner turmoil because he said, "Hey, it's alright. We'll figure it out. In fact, I don't think there's any better place for an upcoming superhero than here, with the best ones in the world."_ _

__Tony smiled at him gratefully. "Thanks, Rhodes."_ _

__"Now go get some sleep. It's late. Tomorrow I'm meeting the kid, though, and I'm planning on embarrassing you, so prepare for that."_ _

__Tony laughed. "Wouldn't have expected anything less."_ _

__A few minutes later, Tony was crawling into bed next to Pepper. He couldn't fall asleep, too paranoid about Peter, so he asked his AI, "FRIDAY, what's Peter up to?"_ _

__"Mr. Parker is in the bathroom." Tony shot up at that._ _

__The day after they'd gotten back and Tony learned the whole story, he had Peter reverse what he'd done to FRIDAY. Tony even tested it yesterday to make sure it was normal again, but obviously Peter changed it back._ _

__He ran the entire way to Peter's room and swung the door opened. Tony took a deep breath of relief when he saw the light of the bathroom on through the opened door. The relief only lasted a few seconds, because soon after he walked in the room, he heard Peter's familiar hiccuped sobs._ _

__Tony walked to the door and knocked a little, even though it was cracked opened. "Pete? Everything okay?"_ _

__There was a moment of brief silence. "Y- yeah. Just a nightmare. It's stupid." Tony opened the door and walked in, his heart clenching at the sad boy on the floor. "You can go, Mr. Stark. I don't want to bother you."_ _

__"Kid," Tony said as he sat next to him. "How many times do I have to tell you, you never bother me. It's quite literally impossible." Peter laughed a little at that and leaned some of his weight against Tony. "What's going on, Pete? What was your nightmare about? You know it helps to talk about them."_ _

__Peter shuddered and curled into Tony even more, his broken body practically fully healed already from the fight before. "Just the usual. My Aunt May begging me to save her while she dies, Uncle Ben saying I'm a failure, you dying in front of me."_ _

__Tony wrapped an arm around his shoulder and Peter sighed against his chest. "I get nightmares too, you know?"_ _

__"Really?" Peter asked tiredly._ _

__"Yeah. They've gotten better mostly." Tony yawned. "They do get better."_ _

__"That's good, Tony. Maybe we can fight off each others nightmares."_ _

__Tony smiled and his eyes slipped shut. "Sounds like a good plan, kid."_ _

__Peter didn't respond, and a few minutes later, Tony was asleep too._ _

__PETER  
Peter woke up the next morning with a kinked neck. He was momentarily confused when he saw he was in the bathroom, but the night before came rushing back to him when he saw Tony._ _

__"Hey, kid. You're up." Tony yawned and rubbed at his eyes as Peter sat up straight. "How're you feeling today?"_ _

__"Better," he replied honestly._ _

__"Great because there's someone I want you to meet today." Tony stood up and Peter followed suit._ _

__"Who?"_ _

__"Rhodey, obviously. He got back late last night when everyone was sleeping."_ _

__Peter froze and gaped. "Th- the Iron Patriot? War Machine? Tony, I can't just-"_ _

__Tony grinned fondly at him. "Can't what, kid?"_ _

__Peter tried to calm his racing heart. "I don't know. I'm just nervous. He's so cool."_ _

__"I'm Iron Man, and you hang out with me all the time. I'm pretty cool too, right?"_ _

__Peter smiled. "Eh, you're alright, I guess."_ _

__Tony pressed a dramatic hand to his chest. "I'm wounded, Pete, really I am. Now I'm really going to make you meet him. Let's go."_ _

__And that's how Peter found himself face to face with the Iron Patriot. "H- hello, sir. Mr. Rhodes. Hi. I'm Peter Parker. I'm a big fan."_ _

__"Just call me Rhodey," he said with a smile. "Have to say I'm a fan of yours too. Spiderman had really only just recently come up on our radar, but I'm impressed with what I've seen."_ _

__Peter's eyes widened. "Seriously? Oh man, that's so cool!"_ _

__Before Rhodey could reply, the door opened and Steve and Bucky walked in, immediately freezing. Tony was still holding a grudge against Bucky, no matter how many times Peter told him he was being petty._ _

__"Hey, Bucky! Hi, Steve, look who it is! And get this, he's heard of me before! Well, he's heard of Spiderman." Tony was glaring at Bucky and Peter rolled his eyes. "Chill out, Tony. I've already told you it wasn't his fault."_ _

__"You could've died, Pete-"_ _

__"But I didn't."_ _

__"But you could've."_ _

__Peter groaned. "I'm sorry, Tony. Look, if you're going to be mad at anyone be mad at me." Tony scoffed. "No, I'm serious! Like, I didn't tell you, either, so if you're mad at him, then you have to be mad at me."_ _

__Tony let out a breath and turned to Bucky and Steve, who were still standing by the elevator, ready to make a quick escape. "Fine. Barnes, get in here. You're officially forgiven." Peter smiled and gave Bucky a thumbs up. He heard Rhodey let out a laugh behind him._ _

__"So, what's the deal with Spiderman, anyways? Are you still going out?"_ _

__Peter froze because they hadn't really talked about that yet. "Y- yeah, well, I haven't gone out yet, but I'm going to," he said strongly because there was no way he was quitting Spiderman. "I usually just go patrolling and do small stuff. School's starting pretty soon, and I would go right after school for a little bit, and then later at night." Peter wouldn't look at Tony, too worried about his reaction._ _

__"Peter," Tony said, forcing him to turn to him. "I wanted to ask you, what would you think about getting a new suit?"_ _

__Peter froze. "What?"_ _

__"Yeah. I know I obviously can't stop you from going out, and you don't do anything crazy, right? You just look out for the little guy?" Peter nodded. "Well then you'll need a suit. A real one, not that onesie. And we're going to have rules, okay? Rules that you're going to follow."_ _

__"Yeah, yeah, yeah, of course!" Peter was practically vibrating with excitement. He was going to get a real suit. A _Stark _suit.___ _

____Tony smiled at him. "Let's go to the lab, yeah? Start drawing up some ideas."_ _ _ _

____Peter didn't even respond, just rushed to the lab, with Tony close behind._ _ _ _

____RHODEY  
"So, that's the kid?" he asked. _ _ _ _

____Steve laughed. "Yup. That's Peter."_ _ _ _

____"He's great, isn't he?" Bucky asked with a fond smile, and Rhodey realized that Tony wasn't exaggerating when he said everyone loved him._ _ _ _

____Rhodey laughed. "I can't believe I was gone for a couple months and the team collectively gained a new son."_ _ _ _

____"More like Tony gained a son," Steve said. "We're more like the cool uncles, right Buck?"_ _ _ _

____"Exactly. We're the fun ones." Bucky smiled again when Steve wrapped an arm around his shoulder._ _ _ _

____Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff walked in then and lit up when they saw Rhodey. "Rhodes, you're back!" Bruce said._ _ _ _

____"That I am," he said before hugging the scientist._ _ _ _

____Even Natasha smiled a little and said, "Good to have you back."_ _ _ _

____"Well I can't really talk now, but it's Steve's turn to cook dinner, so tonight we'll catch up. Tony just called me to the lab for something with Peter- wait, have you met Peter? Rhodes, you'll love him-"_ _ _ _

____Rhodey laughed, completely at awe at how this kid managed to steal the hearts of all the Avengers. "Yes, I met him. He seems sweet."_ _ _ _

____Bruce's phone started beeping. "I've really got to get to the lab. We'll talk later!"_ _ _ _

____"I missed a lot," he said after Bruce left._ _ _ _

____"Nah," Nat said. "Just one really big thing."_ _ _ _

____Rhodey shook his head with a small smile. "I never thought I'd see the day Tony Stark was a dad. He's always been so scared of becoming Howard..." He trailed off. "I'm just glad he realized he could be better."_ _ _ _

____Rhodey remembered long nights of Tony drunkenly going on about how he could never have kids, that he'd only mess them up. That he would fail, and ruin them forever, but as he stood here and listened to stories of Peter Parker and Tony, he realized that those days were over_ _ _ _

____Because whether he knew it or not, Tony Stark was officially a father._ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOF this took a long time, sorry works just been craaazy lately. Sorry this ones kinda short, I just kinda cranked it out a little quickly. Hope it's alright <33


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